this is my ground
by SkippingThrough
Summary: Peter has to go save the world. Or, at least, his internship with Tony Stark. His teacher doesn't agree. / Spider-Man: Homecoming
1. Chapter 1

On an average day, Peter Parker would somewhat lethargically wait until the bell that signified the end of the school day before immediately heading over to the library, or whatever structurally sound building was available and had been allocated for the Decathlon team.

He would then participate an average of 7 times each session as was required - it _was_ a rather small team - and spend the rest of his time sighing over Liz and avoiding MJ's knowing and amused gaze from her seat in a shadowy corner.

As this was an average Tuesday - as was proven by Peter's unexciting breakfast consisting of a soggy bowl of cereal, his unusually boring daily run-in with Flash, wherein Flash shouted faux-happily at seeing "Penis Parker!" and Peter grimaced in resignation at the crass and embarrassing nature of the nickname that characterized the majority of their interactions, and his especially unexciting review of a previous lesson in Advanced Physics - Peter had expected to halfheartedly answer any questions directed his way and get home to the highlight of his day; his patrol.

So between the humdrum of Peter's thoughts, the chaos of highly offended arguing, and the echo of ringing bells as the team conducted a mock competition, he was surprised to even notice the buzzing of his cellphone.

He casually surveyed the gleefully amused faces around him as most of his fellow teammates looked on, distracted, by Betty Brant's increasingly frustrated attempts to convince Abe that his answer was outdated according to several credible articles recently published in a well-known journal, resulting in his answer having already been debunked as a myth. Liz Allen, the love of his life and team captain, and the teacher were steadily approaching the two arguing students.

Making use of the distraction, Peter snuck his hand below the table into the depths of his backpack, and almost jumped several feet into the air after glimpsing the contact photo on the buzzing screen of his phone.

As Betty's annoyance grew more palpable and Abe's grin grew with it, Peter took a chance and ducked beneath the thin table cloth.

"Uh - hi, er. Hello, Mr Stark." Peter fumbled out in a hushed whisper - despite the sound of his voice and complete departure from the table being masked by the scene playing out in front of the curious students. He studiously ignored the blinking 5% of his poor, abused battery.

"Hey, kid. I've been calling for ages now. Where the hell are you?" Tony stark's gruff tone was mellowed out by Peter's confusion and sudden apprehension.

"Um, I'm still at school. I have to practice for the Decathlon. Should I not be? Are we going somewhere again?" Peter's voice noticeably picked up a few pitches in his excitement to participate in another life-threatening - albeit - heroic situation with his idol at his side. He felt more than saw a few heads turn his way before relaxing as they almost instantly turned back to the escalating argument.

"You're supposed to be at Stark Tower already! I recall telling you I have a board meeting today. How am I supposed to present why sponsoring your little, genius mind isn't a total waste of time if you aren't even there?"

"W - what? But I thought you were in India! And - and Mr Stark, you told me the meeting was moved to Friday the last time you called me. So - so - so the board members could have an excuse to drink after meeting with you." Peter protested, voice raising in volume.

"Look, whatever I said - there are seven board members here with sticks shoved so far up their asses that every time they open their mouths they could conduct photosynthesis. More are arriving as I speak. All I have to do is tote you around, shake a few hands, and let you babble science at them. It starts in 20 minutes."

"Wait but -" The phone beeped to indicate his dead battery and shut off. Peter assumed the conversation was over anyway. In his experience, ultimatums were typically conversation enders.

In his panic, Peter raised his head and cursed lowly when he was painfully reminded of he table above him blocking his entry back into the much more average world of school - Decathlon antics aside.

He raised his eyes casually above its edge and, upon catching almost all of his teammates staring at him in the sudden oppressing silence of the cafeteria - one still fuming Betty Brant and one darkly amused Flash included - almost ducked back under the weight of their gazes. Instead, he mumbled an apology, fumbled a self deprecating joke, and was about to choke out an excuse for leaving before he was interrupted by their supervising teacher.

Now, as high-schoolers at an advanced school for science-inclined young adults, most everyone was under the belief that they didn't require the constant presence of an adult to look after them whenever a small group of more than 3 students congregated on school property. Both the school board and those otherwise on staff within the school respectfully but vehemently disagreed, so the Decathlon team was forced to stick out today's meeting with somebody largely unfamiliar to them, despite begging and pleading otherwise.

This lack of was knowledge from either side was, perhaps, the reason why Peter's stuttered excuse as he attempted to leave the theatre stage where the team was located didn't fly with him.

"Mr. Parker, I've had enough trouble with this team. Please sit back down and hand me your phone, if I can't trust you to pay attention to the proceedings with it in your hands."

Peter winced and then audibly whimpered when Liz gave him a mildly pointed look. He could swear he heard his phone give one last, pathetic buzz in the palm of Mr. Warner's hand as it was set onto a stool between the two tables of students.

"Mr. Warner, I really have to go. Something came up at my internship! It's really important to me." Peter attempted to cajole him. However, Mr Warner was no novice, as h had been teaching for over thirty years. He had both a kind face and soothing manner, but refused to bend to the tricks of teenagers.

"If your internship really needs you, they can contact the office and go through all the official channels, Mr. Parker."

Flash snorted in laughter at that. "Hey, maybe if your lucky your boss Tony Stark will stop by and get you out of here."

Peter fisted his hands in his jeans and focused on MJ's snarky reply to Flash's stupidity. He glanced at the clock before running a hand through his hair. This routine continued after Liz got the club back into order and continued drilling the other team with questions. Mr. Warner took the chance to approach Peter's table and began his own set of exercises with them. His kind eyes occasionally flicked to Peter in concern and Peter willed his face to regain some of it's usual healthy color.

Distracted, he answered the questions thrown at him and when he took another look at the clock, another seven minutes had passed.

Peter began planning how discreet he would have to be to fake a bathroom emergency and then slip out of school unnoticed in a bright red and blue spider-suit. Theoretically, he could climb out of a window and web-swing through the city. It was just another perk of his powers; a lack of air traffic.

There was a short lull in the noise at his table before Peter noticed he had been asked a question. The response was on his tongue when the doors to the theatre dramatically flew open.

Peter blinked. He blinked again and considered if the residual panic was making him hallucinate.

Nope. Tony stark was casually strolling through the aisle between seats, heading down to the stage. Evidently, Peter wasn't the only one who noticed, as someone at the other table let out a strangled " _Holy Shit_ " to sum up the situation.

Peter was rising out of his seat before he knew what he was doing and called out, hesitantly, "Mr Stark! What are you doing here?"

Tony Stark looked up from his phone and gave his signature cocky grin "I told you kid, we're gonna be late. But we might as well do it in style. Happy's out front with the car."

Peter who was struck almost speechless himself by the gesture, took a moment to appreciate the sound of Flash choking in surprise. He nabbed his phone from the stool and listened as a teammate numbly, almost automatically hit Flash's back. Liz's eyes were as wide as her mouth at the display and even MJ had stopped scribbling in the corner of the stage.

"Right! Uh - sorry for keeping you Mr Stark." Peter was proud that he didn't trip over his words. He slipped on his backpack and jumped off the stage, landing in a high crouch near his idols' feet.

Mr Warden seemingly remembered himself before Peter left. He halfheartedly called out in concern, "Mr Parker! You still don't have permission to leave from the office." Maybe he was afraid Peter was going to be kidnapped by Tony Stark and held in the basement of some faraway R&D lab? Peter resolved to apologize to him later. Dealing with Mr Stark was hard work. Maybe muffins would do the trick..?

He turned to explain his predicament to the teacher before Mr Stark said something snarky and mean, but the sound of shifting papers distracted him. Peter's eyes widened when he saw the papers Mr Stark had just handed his teacher.

With that, he numbly let himself be lead out of the theatre, giving little protest until the two finally made it outside.

"But - but you -" Peter blustered, seemingly unable to wrap his mind around Tony Stark taking the time to do _official_ paperwork and _sign_ Peter out of school, instead of charming his way in.

Tony Stark rolled his eyes.

"What do you think took me so long, kid? And don't look at me like that - I could've arrived in my Iron Man suit. I almost did before Happy talked me out of it."

The car doors closed and Peter dropped his backpack onto his lap. Tony Stark situated himself more comfortably into his seat and continued typing on his Stark-phone. Peter watched his school disappear out of sight and briefly considered how this may not be the last time both sides of his life would intersect so completely.

He took out his Chemistry textbook and started reading.

 **author's note:**

So I have to admit that this was written mostly so that Peter could get a chance to show off his shiny new father-figure. You can tell I like my dramatic reveals (and my outsider povs, but I'm bad at those)

Also I hope I didn't make Mr Warden the villain. I didn't mean to. I just wanted to show him as a nice/caring old teacher who thought he was being tricked by a wily teen hoping to skip.

Also I may have fudged the timeline? Was MJ around when Liz was stick the team captain? Sure, let's say she was and she stuck around to mock Peter and offer sarcastic insight. So this was a random day between the start of the film and Homecoming.


	2. Chapter 2

It was a surprisingly pleasant day for fall in New Jersey. Smoggy, with just a hint of a stinging breeze like the swat of a whip which Peter knew from personal experience only stung more the closer you were to the sky.

Luckily, those were both things the city's inhabitants either grew to tolerate or add to an ever-growing laundry list of reasons why they should move out as soon as possible. Other frequent sights on the list included traffic, the early going-to-work subway crowd, the after-work subway crowd, and property damage.

Peter gazed longingly out of smudged hotel lobby windows with his head in his hands.

He considered how he could have been swinging hundreds of feet in the air and enjoying the crisp fall breeze; as well as calling out to excitedly waving children that so frequently stopped to shout in joy at seeing him.

Instead, he was camped out in the hallway of a three star hotel on the outskirts of Cape May, New Jersey. Meanwhile, his decathlon club adviser had been stuck arguing with half of the hotel's staff for over an hour and counting.

Peter felt his eyes droop closed and hurriedly opened them. He shook his head to clear his brain and squinted tiredly as Ned moved to offer him a french fry.

The clouds outside of the window, which had been a fluffy, vanilla ice cream shade of white about forty five minutes ago, were now the grey shade of Peter's gym socks.

The familiar click-clack of steel-toed combat boots jarred Peter out of his sleepy daydreams. MJ had finally returned from her position at the front desk, where she had been observing the battle taking place between Mr. Harrington and the hotel staff.

At some point, Mr. Harrington had seemed to have gained some traction, but Peter stopped paying attention when management got involved in the first place. Even now, he could hear some restrained whisper-shouting from the desk.

He lifted his head from the cradle of his arms and looked toward MJ from the table where he and Ned had been lounging.

"Hey, MJ. Any change?" Peter asked halfheartedly, his sleepiness from being forced to wake up at five am for the long, bumpy bus ride apparent.

MJ's visibly annoyed gait and clenched fists told Peter everything he needed to know. She leaned against her suitcase before thumping down violently on an empty seat between Ned and Peter. MJ threw Ned's sweatshirt, which had previously occupied the seat, into News lap.

"None," She growled. "They're still insisting we don't have a reservation here. Which is, frankly, bullshit because I was the one who confirmed it three months ago."

MJ thumbed violently through a well-worn copy of something or another by Tolstoy. She hissed at the newly opened paper cut on her thumb. Ned passed her a french fry and she reached out to steal a frustrated sip of his milkshake, instead. Ned leaned back on his suitcase in exasperation and redirected the french fry towards his mouth.

"Do you have a copy of the receipt or some kind of confirmation?" Ned asked in concern. Though he and Cindy had been lazily arguing about video game pseudo-physics for the past fifteen minutes, even he was getting tired of the situation they were stuck in.

"I do! I have it on my email and I even showed them the screenshots I took of it! They just aren't budging," MJ continued, "Every hotel in the area has been booked out for months, too. Even if we shared with three people to a room, there wouldn't be enough available rooms. I've checked the area within fifty miles of us just in case, and there's going to be a parade here soon, so there's no vacancies."

MJ growled and snapped the book shut. Peter could hear Mr. Harrington's argument with the managers of the hotel escalating. He continued listening as Ned and MJ debated the merits of going to call an even higher level of management.

Peter strained his ears a little harder to hear the restless conversations between the other decathlon members, who were scattered along the waiting area. One of the perks he'd discovered a long time ago, which came with the development of his powers, was superior hearing.

Overall though, boredom had long manifested itself among everyone present. Even, to Peter's great surprise, Flash, who sounded like he was aimlessly getting into an argument with Abe over the migration patterns of pigeons.

Peter looked around him. At least here, nobody was eyeing him strangely. After Tony Stark's sudden appearance at his school, the rumor mill had seemed to explode ten-fold as students and staff tried to sleuth their way into figuring out the reason behind why Tony Stark had visited Midtown. After that reason had been revealed to be Peter Parker, it still left more questions than answers.

The rumors cropped up like weeds, each growing more ridiculous and unbelievable with every run around the school, like some strange, inverted game of Telephone. A few particularly brave people even sought Peter out and approached him with their questions, which Peter didn't have any idea how to react to. Luckily, MJ had been able to distract them with a few brusque words.

If this was what fame felt like, peter was glad he never became an Avenger, and he was only more determined now not to let anybody else find out about his other secret identity as Spider-Man.

Peter was just glad that, after numerous interrogations by his teammates and friends, and the extraction of a promise from Mr. Stark never to come to his school again, he was just about done with the whole few weeks of whispers in the halls and starstruck eyes glancing speculatively at him made him incredibly uncomfortable and nervous to mention anything relating to his other persona.

"Alright, everyone! Let's move out! I've got news for you all." Mr. Harrison shouted from his position looming over the main desk. He made his way over toward the lobby area where the group of teenagers had gathered.

Peter was willing to bet Ned's lego Death Star that he had to physically unstick his shoes from the floor before moving.

"Finally! C'mon, dude, let's go." Ned urged. MJ was already several steps ahead of them and Peter allowed himself a moment of hope. Things were looking up.

.

.

.

Peter shuffled up the stairs and back into the god-awful yellow school bus that had brought him here. He nearly tripped over Flash's foot, and with Flash's laughter bouncing around in one ear, he sat down heavily in front of Ned.

"I can't believe we have to go back home after all of that," Ned sighed in his ear. "But at least we get something out of this in the end! Europe, dude! That's so cool!"

After calling everyone over, Mr. Harrington made an unexpected announcement that left everyone surprised. He had contacted the officials behind the national competition and apparently, there had been a change of plans.

A change of board leadership and the major overhaul that came with the expansion of the academic decathlon into Europe meant the latest competition was set to be held in London, not New Jersey.

The announcement had been followed by dead silence and Mr. Harrington explained how the fast-paced changes meant a few schools had missed the message.

He followed up the explanation by assuring everyone that the trip wasn't going to cost them any more than what they had already paid to go to New Jersey, as this was a government-funded test run and an example of the USAD's positive influence on learning for students.

Ned gave Peter and excited, goofy grin and whispered, "Didn't you go to Europe that one time? You know, for your superhero thing?"

Peter's eyes widened in alarm and he whipped his hear around swiftly, looking at the other decathlon members. Luckily, Peter and Ned had situated themselves closer to the front of the bus, whereas mostly everyone else was sitting near the back. Mr. Harrington was still guiding a few stragglers inside, and the bus driver was loading their suitcases into a compartment near the wheels.

"Ned! Don't say it where everyone can hear you!" Peter pleaded.

"But, uh, yeah. It was Germany," he confided. "Only for a few days though and I was kinda busy at the time. Now, we'll have a whole week to explore."

The bus drops closed with a hiss and Peter considered his options.

A whole week in London. A week with minimal homework, because most of his teachers understood that spring break was a sacred and any homework was unlikely to get done until the night before it was due, and hanging out and exploring with his friends. Peter wouldn't have to worry about pop quizzes or accidentally falling asleep in physics.

But, could he _really_ leave New York just like that? Without Spider-Man?

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 **author's note:** This chapter has been revised as of 05/26/18. Beware!


	3. Chapter 3

**author's note:** Hey all! I updated the previous chapter and added a few important plot-related things to it, so please read that before reading this!

* * *

Tony Stark knew something was wrong with Peter the second he heard JARVIS announce the kid's arrival in his lab. Namely, because he was supposed to be keeping himself busy in New Jersey on a decathlon trip, as per his agreement with Tony and his Aunt May to balance both school and "work".

Even Tony, with his head permanently in the throes of blueprints and future projects, had remembered that much (though that was partially thanks to JARVIS' daily reminders and partially because the kid wouldn't shut up about the upcoming trip with how excited he was for the event).

Tony spared a second to wonder whether or not he should worry. He decided the fact that Peter was still in New York was vaguely concerning, though more concerning was the kid's uncharacteristic silence. Usually, Peter was jumping about the lab with wide-eyes, asking Tony to look at the schematics for one project or another.

Otherwise, he'd be studying intently in the corner or playing around with any of the bots. The awkward twiddling and fidgety gestures he was making, on the other hand, weren't quite the norm.

"Hey, kid? Aren't you supposed to have galloped off to New Jersey on your white horse about —" Tony gestured at one of JARVIS' sensors with an oil covered elbow.

"Seven and a half hours ago, sir," JARVIS filled in knowingly. His voice sounded only faintly disappointed that Tony didn't know this Very Important Information off the top of his head.

Tony hummed in response and considered looking at Peter to gauge his response to his awkward prodding. Instead, he gestured for DUMMY to hand him a wrench and promptly muttered a curse when DUMMY dropped a screwdriver into his hand instead.

Peter leaned against a nearby lab table, and watched Tony fiddle with the wiring of his latest project, somewhat conscientious of the expensive equipment in the lab.

"I'm good, thanks for asking Mr. Stark!" He reassured his mentor quickly.

Tony glanced back with a raised eyebrow and a scolding already on his lips.

"Right, well, that not really what I asked. Anyway, you're about as convincing at lying as Hammer is at schmoozing. What's really happening?"

Peter rubbed the back of his neck nervously and looked around the pristine lab.

"Um, well. The decathlon trip was delayed and it turns out it's sorta being held in London? Like London, England sort of London," Peter explained. "And I've already told May and she's all 'you should go, Peter' and um..."

Tony snorted.

"And, just. If I leave, there's not going to be anyone to stop crime like muggings, or even anyone to fetch cats out of trees! Which I've only done once or twice, by the way."

"New York won't fall apart if you aren't there for a week. Anyway, it's not like you need my blessing either, kid. Go! Be a normal teenager; not a souped up spider kid," Peter opened his mouth to reply and Tony interrupted, "And pass me that cable looking thing over there."

Peter fetched the cable and continued speaking.

"But I won't be there to stop any crimes! Someone could get hurt!"

He sounded genuinely broken up over the possibility. Tony wondered if he could get that sort of emotion in a jar and use it next time he had to get out of trouble with Ross. He put down his tools and turned to look at Peter.

"Look, I know you don't believe me, but looking after every single person in the city isn't your responsibility just because you have super powers. You should relax once in a while and let other people, who are paid and trained, do the job. There are tons of superheroes flying around, whether Ross or anyone else wants them here or not," Tony muttered the last part. "New York will be fine."

By the time Tony looked at Peter again, the kid seemed less gloomy. Tony was glad to see him brighten up; he hadn't dealt with teenage angst since his own days as an early high school grad in MIT, and he wasn't about to start now.

"Thanks so much Mr. Stark!" Peter looked ready to ambush him for a hug. Instead, he settled on a very enthusiastic wave goodbye and began heading for the door.

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" Tony shouted to Peter's back.

"— And don't do anything I would do," Peter chimed in. "I remember how it goes Mr. Stark. Goodbye, sir!"

Despite all attempts at dissuading him against it (Well, most attempts. Tony was pretty cocky, after all.) Peter held onto both his hero worship and certain formalities with an iron grip.

Tony watched Peter disappear behind the doors and continued working. After all, he had deadlines that he should at least _try_ to make.

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.

.

Peter had never been to a public airport before in his life. In fact, the last and only time he had been in a plane, it was a private flight headed directly to Germany for the fight of his life.

The first thing he noticed was how busy it was. There were people rushing about every which way, lugging backpacks or carrying suitcases behind them. Other people were standing in small groups consulting their phones or just chatting.

The amount of noise and periodic announcements about the cancellation of one flight or the departure of another was astounding and overwhelming. Peter resisted the urge to close his eyes. He put in his earbuds and took careful, slow breaths instead. Somebody grabbed his shirt sleeve and tugged him forward lightly.

"Come on, this way. You've never been to an airport before, right? I think I heard Ned mention this is your first time," Cindy commented. She looked him over once and, after apparently passing muster, the concern in her eyes dropped slightly.

"We're sitting over here and waiting for Flash to get his bags checked in. I _know_ Mr. Harrington warned us to try to bring carry-ons only to make the process easier, but of _course_ Flash would disregard that," Cindy muttered in fond annoyance. Peter couldn't relate.

Ned waved when he and Cindy managed to squirm out of the stream of people and into his eyesight.

"I'm so pumped for this, dude! The flight's kinda long, but I streamed a ton of superhero movies on my laptop. We have a lot to catch up on."

Michelle chimed into the conversation without lifting her nose from her book.

"Don't even think about it, losers. We have a lot of studying to do. Liz said she was planning a sort of quiz bowl on the plane."

Ned barely had time to express his disappointment before they noticed several decathlon members making their way over to security.

"Mr. Harrington is waving us over. It looks like it's time to get in line for security." Cindy pointed toward Mr. Harrington. He was indeed waving his arms and gesturing for the students to come this way. His bright yellow sweater vest was making an attempt to draw more attention than his dramatically flailing arms, and Peter couldn't decide which of the two made him more noticeable.

MJ caught his eye and stifled a smile, after having come to the exact same conclusion. She began moving toward the line and Peter grabbed the handle of his suitcase and followed the rest of his teammates. It was going to be a long day and, like Ned had said, an even longer flight.

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 **authors note:**

I guess i'm back? Sorry about the update time, this is...very hard to write. But at least I finally have something vaguely resembling a plot set up. Since my last update, i've been writing a lot (insert shameless plug to check out other works on my profile) so my style has changed a little. I hope no-one minds.

Thanks for all the favorites/favs/follows. And the reviews, especially! They fuel me to write more. Also I appreciate any feedback for this chapter because I'm still not entirely confident in it. Let me know what ya'll think!


	4. Chapter 4

The London airport wasn't very different from JFK, Peter noticed. Same thick crowds with harried looking people, same sense of urgency, and even some of the same smells.

Peter glanced at MJ, who predictably enough, had her nose buried in another worn looking paperback. She was also stealing periodic sips from a steaming hot cup of coffee. Clearly, overpriced airport goods were also exactly the same an ocean away.

Peter followed the disorganized crowds with his eyes before turning to watch Ned's form as he desperately trying to avoid bumping into any passerby on his way back to the team.

Ned noticed Peter's eyes on him and waved enthusiastically. He could give Mr. Harrington a run for his money, Peter thought absently.

"Hey, Peter! Check it out!" Ned yelled brightly.

He stumbled on someone's bright white sneaker-clad foot before recovering. Peter rolled his eyes at Flash's snickering.

"Dude, look! British crumpets!"

"I think they're just pastries, Ned. Crumpets are meant to be rounder," Liz chimed in from nearby.

"What no way. The sign totally said - " Ned cut off. Mr. Harrington was moving toward them with a determined expression on his face. Peter assumed he meant business.

"Listen up team! The bus will be here soon," Everyone perked up and Mr. Harrington smiled knowingly at their excited faces, "Yes, it's a red double-decker."

"Hell yes!" Ned yelled right next to Peter's ear. Peter tried not to make his wince too obvious. The excited exclamations of his teammates combined with the noise of the airport created an unpleasant buzz in the back of his head.

Out of the concern of his eye, Peter saw Cindy look over at him in concern. Even MJ had given him a second glance before returning half of her attention to her paperback and half to Mr. Harrington. Peter tugged on the sleeves of his sweater absentmindedly and tried not to meet anyone's gaze.

He should be used to this by now. He could deal with this.

Peter tuned out the rest of Mr. Harrington's words. He could get Ned to tell him anything he missed. Or MJ, though he didn't want to risk her suspicion.

Peter zoned in just in time to see Liz stand up and stretch before following Harrington. The rest of the team had stood up and everyone was gathering their carry-ons (or, in Flash's case, suitcases)

Peter grabbed his duffel bag and tugged lightly onto Ned's hoodie, just enough to stop Ned in his tracks without ripping the fabric (which was something he'd had to learn through trial and error in the past few months since gaining his powers).

As the Decathlon team converged into the crowds, Peter let himself get lost in the conversations around him.

.

.

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"Woah! Take a look at this!" Abe shouted from across the hallway. Peter turned and wondered briefly at how he had managed to get so far away in such a short period of time. And, more importantly, how Peter hadn't noticed.

Then he looked at where Abe was currently located (nearly on top of a forest of marble statues spanning maybe one third of the hotel foyer, with a glorious fountain that dripped a steady stream of clear water into a pond below as the centerpiece).

"Oh my god," Sally said, sounding a little bit scandalized. Peter couldn't ascertain whether she meant Abe's position or the display itself, but Liz had cracked a smile at her tone and, frankly, Peter's mind short-circuited for a moment.

Although Peter had certainly never seen anything this wealthy and opulent, save for a few of the rooms in Mr. Stark's tower, either, so he could relate.

Come to think of it, this place kind of reminded Peter of the hotel he stayed at in Germany. It had a similar intimidating air of money and luxury.

Peter was getting nervous. Was this even the right location? Or as someone in a suit and earpiece going to kick them out with their tails between their legs in a moment?

"Psshhh, this is nothing," Flash said, interrupting Peter's train of thought. Although even he was craning his head around to look at the high ceilings and white, nearly fluorescent tiles of the hotel entrance.

"Alright, team! This way," Mr. Harrington had finally come back from his trip to the front desk, which was more successful than the one he undertook in New Jersey, as evidence by the many key cards and pamphlets he was trying not to drop outright.

Peter watched as Ned grabbed the cards for their shared room and they shared a look of awe when Mr. Harrington told Ned they would be on the eleventh floor.

Sometimes, superhero hearing was good for more than just listening to idle gossip. Or rocking out to the music playing in other people's rooms a block away. Not that Peter had done that...more than twice.

Peter hurried to the elevator with Ned, which was quickly filling up with the excited chatter of his other teammates. The doors closed and Peter immediately looked down as they descended. The entire elevator was made of slightly frosted glass.

He could see Mr. Harrington herding Abe off to the next elevator with his roommate, Seymour. Off to the side, Peter could see the receptionist's circular desk. There was a group of arriving tourists, clearly wealthy, stepping off another elevator.

A group of business people in official looking suits were gathered around the receptionist's desk. One of them was gesturing to the elevators and the others were following his gaze. There was something...off. Peter felt a pulse, like the beginning of a headache, near the back of his head. He squinted but...

"Hey, look. None of the competitions even start until Tuesday. We've got two days to do whatever we want," Ned pulled Peter away from his observations and pointed at the pamphlet he was holding.

"Really? Nice! I bet we can wander around nearby and explore. Maybe we'll even meet some of the other teams." Sally said excitedly.

Peter tried to take one last look at the group but ducking down would be suspicious and the elevator was still rising, unimpeded.

"What do you think, dude? Hey, Peter? Peter?" Ned questioned.

Peter snapped out of it.

"Huh? Oh, yea. That'd be pretty cool."

Ned gave him a cool smile and whispered, "Did Liz distract you again?"

Peter elbowed him and glanced at Liz in his panic. She was still busy talking to Sally, although she gave him a quick smile when she noticed his stare.

"Ned," Peter hissed.

Ned gave an mused bark of laughter and began gently lambasting Peter on his choice of crushes. Peter groaned and tried to focus on the present.

Last time he was in Europe, he'd had several tons of solid metal dropped on him and engaged in a life-or-death fight with ex-Avengers who also doubled as internationally wanted criminals. It was healthy to maintain a certain level of paranoia, but now was not the time. After all, he was here for the Academic Decathlon. To represent his school. He was supposed to be off hero duty.

Whoever those people were back there...

Peter shook off the slight pulsing in his head. It was probably a false alarm.

.

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 **athor's note:** Sorry Ive been out for so long. writing chapters over 500 words is hard ahaha. hopefully more to come, and within a less than six month period. thanks for sticking with me and lemme know what yall think.

By the way, this fic is pretty gen. it might have references to crushes or whatever but...no real romance here

..also, the thing in an earlier author's note where i said this was between peter being spiderman and homecoming? screw it. we have Tony Stark the mentor and we have MJ and we have Liz all together in one fic. i dont need a continuity. screw the timeline.


	5. Chapter 5

The hotel bathroom is as big as Peter's bedroom back in Queens and then some.

Thanks to Mr. Stark, Peter is a little more used to casual extravagance. The amount of empty floor space in the compound could probably fill up several gyms. KAREN once explained to him that it was very avant garde, but May had rolled her eyes and said it was wasteful.

"Holy shit. They aren't playing around. Look at these digs," Peter hears Abe exclaim loudly from the hotel room across from theirs. He doesn't even need his enhanced super-hearing for that one.

Peter snaps a photo with his phone and send it off to Happy in a habitual text. Just because he's got a little more access to Mr Stark doesn't mean he's not going to send Happy updates!

Also, these days, he half expects a polite duck off text to greet him in a few hours. Sometimes, Happy switches it up and doesn't send anything at all. It's pretty 50/50 with him.

Peter enters the bedroom only to see a bag of gummy bears from the newly discovered mini-fridge tossed his direction.

He catches the bag and tears it open.

A knock sounds on the door and Abe rushes to open it. MJ's face appears just in time to see Peter tear the head off of his gummy bear.

"You know what those are made of, right?" MJ points out with an almost gleeful expression. There's nothing she loves more than being the bearer of bad news. Peter shrugs.

Cindy and Betty peek their heads in through the doorway.

"Are you guys ready to go grab lunch? Mr. Harrison just texted. He said he's waiting downstairs,"

"We'll be there soon!" Ned calls out. He ushers MJ out the door and turns expectantly to Peter.

"Hold on, I'll be downstairs soon. I need to get my phone,"

Peter runs back to the bedroom and fishes his phone out from the middle of the bed where'd he'd tossed it after his text to Happy. Something in his head blares and he looks up at the window, hearing a tap. He approaches the clear glass cautiously and sees a bird lift off from the edge of the windowsill.

Peter breathes a sign of relief. False alarm. Just leftover paranoia from New York.

He pockets his phone and runs off to catch up to the rest of the team. In the hallway, Peter bumps into Seymour.

"Hey Seymour! Nice, you're late too," Seymour gives him a friendly smile and taps his glasses pointedly.

"Yeah, I took them off for a moment and almost couldn't find them again."

Peter gives an understanding nod and steps into a ready elevator. Seymour follows.

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Lunch in the middle of London is loud. The team took a double-decker bus and everyone, Mr. Harrington included, was too busy oggling at the sights to notie they were meant to get off at a previous stop. Liz had to remind Mr. Harrison and he had hissed out a quiet curse which Peter did a double-take at because Mr. Harrington _never_ cussed.

 _Maybe this trip is more stressful than he's letting on_ , Peter wondered vaguely.

Once they arrive at the restaurant, Peter finds out that the crowds are _everywhere_.

"It's almost like we never left." Seymour jokes as they stand in the queue and wait for an available table.

Peter ends up crowded up against Cindy and Mr. Harrison. Flash pinches him as he slides into a chair across from Peter. MJ notices him jerk and rolls her eyes. Liz organizes an impromptu quiz bowl after everyone orders, but it doesn't last very long. The smells coming from everyone else's plates are too enticing to ignore for a group of hungry teenagers and their frustrated chaperone.

Once the food arrives, the day begins to blur. Peter remembers stealing a chip from Ned's plate and laughing at something Abe says. And then laughing at something Abe says again.

If there's one thing Abe prides himself on, it's his sense of humor.

After their first authentic London cuisine lunch, they walk to the Buckingham Palace as Mr. Harrison lectures about its history. He lets Liz take over to talk about the composition of the architecture as MJ chimes in with a few fun facts about historically important visitors.

"Peter come here!" Ned shouts in front of the Victoria Memorial. He waves his phone in the air meaningfully and Peter puts on his toothiest smile for the upcoming selfies. They even rope MJ into a few of the photos, but it isn't until Mr. Harrison insists on a group photo that Peter realizes how many people are staring.

It isn't that their group is acting unusual. Neither is it their American accents. Peter's heard five different languages spoken in the past three minutes alone. And everyone else is also posing ridiculously and taking photos.

There's even a tour group approaching from Peter's left with twice as many people. All of them are lugging around suitcases or big, bulky cameras. Peter always wanted one for himself, but they're expensive and he never got up the courage to ask May.

"Dude, what is it?" Ned notices that Peter has suddenly gone quiet. He turns, hair in his eyes, and looks up at his best friend. The team dispersed a little after the group photo and Ned can see Flash wandering around near the edge of the tree line, but he tries to keep his voice quiet, cognizant of the tourists around them.

"Nothing, don't worry about," Peter denies weakly.

"Seriously, what's wrong? I'm your guy in the char. You can tell me."

Peter nods weakly. He seems distracted and his eyes are skirting around Ned like he's looking through him.

"I think it's jet-lag or something. I don't feel so good."

"You've never been on a plane before, right?" Ned nods understandingly. "You just have to sleep it off. It should go away pretty soon."

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After another hour of wandering the streets of London, Mr. Harrison gives up on keeping a group of teenagers entertained and insists they return to the hotel for some time to cool off and unpack.

Peter is once again struck at the majesty of the hotel as soon as the automatic doors slide open in front of him. He notices Charles rushes past with Betty in hot pursuit ("If you break my phone I'm going to cut out your tongue!" She yells), but he still can't get over the majesty of the marble fountains. All the white space is eerily reminiscent of the compound.

Peter glances around and locks eyes with the woman at the front desk. She's about Mr. Harrison's age, with a neat, blonde bob of hair and disdain etched into her features. something in Peter's head blares, because there's something familiar about her-

"Get moving, Penis Parker!" Flash says with a strange amount of cheer. The trip through London had the opposite effect on him as compared to Peter. Flash looks like he could go a few rounds with a grizzly bear and come out of it alive; Peter feels like if a grizzly bear was in front of him, he'd just take the mauling.

Peter nearly throws open the door to his and Ned's room and rushes to find his pajamas.

"Hey Ned, I'm going to turn in early, okay?" He yells out. He can hear Ned shuffling around his own suitcase.

"Are you sure, dude? It's really early." Ned glances out at the window and Peter follows his gaze. The sun has barely started setting.

"Trust me, I need this. I think I'll start tearing my hair out if I don't go to bed soon."

'Alright, 'Night, Peter." Peter murmurs a response and begins getting ready for bed, already dreaming of crashing for teh night (and evening) and getting a long bout of nice, dreamless sleep.

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"Has anyone seen any other Decathlon team yet? This place is just full of business-men in suits," Charles asks, bobbing up and down in the pool water.

The hotel's indoor pool was Sally's lucky find. Located down a hallway to the left of the lobby, it took her fifteen minutes of aimless wandering to find a staff member and learn that it was a) free for all guests to use and b) still open, even at 10:30pm.

Luckily, it only took a single short phone call to call Liz down. Within fifteen minutes, the Decathlon members had all gathered (with the exception of Peter, who was sleeping) under the joking guise of a team building activity.

"After lunch today, I went to look for the gym and these two guys in suits were whispering to each other. It was pretty intense. When I turned the corner and they saw me, they both shut up instantly," Cindy recounts.

Sally laughs and rolls up her jeans to put her feet in the water.

"I keep waiting for someone to show me their ID and introduce themselves as Agent, whatever. FBI," She jokes.

Ned watches MJ roll her eyes (dare he say, fondly) at Sally's words from her place on a lounge chair. Her hands thumb the pages of her novel unconsciously and her curly hair is unbound.

"Guys, come on. Most of the teams are probably from the area, so why would they need to stay in a hotel?"

"Well, what about the other American teams? Are they hiding from us or something?"

"I'm sure they're around. Maybe at other hotels. there are three on this block alone," Liz chimes in, unfailingly logical as always.

"We should ask Mr. Harrington tomorrow morning." Seymour says. His glasses are askew on his face and he's balancing very precariously on a hot pink pool raft. Ned doesn't think this will end well for him.

He turns to ask Liz a questions and winces at a loud splash.

 _I totally called it,_ Ned thinks, grinning.

* * *

fun fact: i named this chapter peter parker picks a pack of pickled peppers

fun fun fact: its been 5 months~ not 6, so im not a liar yet haha

funner fact: evreytime i look at the reviews and follows and favs i SWEAT because i feel bad for not wanting to update but editing is like pulling teeth. does anyone wanna beta for me? (i ask, pathetically aware that chapters are less than 2k words)


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